A Year in Review for TGH

Happy Christmas!

We are just two days away from Christmas and I am excited. It has been a wonderful holiday season this year. It took forever to get the Christmas shopping done, but it was worth it.

2009 has been a good year for us. We played another 82 shows this year. That's down from the 96 we played in 2008 but we did play a lot better shows and better venues. To play 176 shows in two years is great. When you take into account we book all of our own shows and tours ourselves. Not to mention we don't have a record label, management, tour support, sponsorships, or anything else. As independent musicians we bare all the burdens ourselves but its worth it.

We once again had a great year getting our songs licensed into tv, film, commericals, etc. We are so thankfully that licensing companies continue to come to us and use our songs.

We have spent the last several months of this year working on what will be our second record. We are all very excited about the music and the creativity with this record. We have all really grown since our first record in so many ways. Looking back now it's like looking at three kids who had no idea what they were doing. We didn't! We hope to have the record out for a late Spring release.

The best part about 2009 was You! All of our friends and fans who continue to support us and the music we make. It was awesome getting to meet many of you for the first time this year. You have always been the most important part of this band. We would not be where we are today if it was not for you.

We hope all of you have a happy and wonderful holiday season and a great New Year. 2010 promises to be the best year of our lives!

Merry Christmas
Jimi, Andy, Chris

No Time for Christmas!

Yikes! Christmas will be here in less then two weeks and I have yet to do any shopping! I am so behind this year. I remember the days of having my list checked off twice by Thanksgiving. Oh well I guess that's not happening this year. Then again I have been putting my time to good use by putting every second of it into the new record. All of us have infact. I don't want to take anything way from the fellows they have worked hard.

As for the record it is starting to really come to life. All of the songs have just come together in such a way that it's hard to believe its us sometimes. Taking our time and not being in a rush for a deadline has made the biggest difference. I know now why bands take months to make records. You just get better records that way.

Looking ahead to 2010 we are charting our course for several tours. One involves us getting on a plane and flying to Europe. I know many of you in the UK, France and Germany are excited about that. We are excited too. We are excited to go to parts of the States we have never played as well. Yes that includes the West Coast! For some reason everyone in California thinks we have just avoided them of purpose, not true at all. We can't wait to come there & play.

Back to the holidays, I have been in such a Christmas spirit this year. I have my tree up and I have for a week now! I a going to make the time starting this week to get out and enjoy the Christmas cheer & spirit and get some shopping done! haha Wish me luck...

Gobble Gobble

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I always thank of Thanksgiving as the start of the whole holiday season. It's a wonderful time of the year I think.

As November comes to close we will be finishing up what has been a busy year for us on the road. It was great getting out and meeting so many of you this year. We made many new friends and fans both. We got to play along side of some great bands too that we now call friends as well. We had the opportunity to play at some really awesome venues as well. Unless we play a holiday show or two we are going to focus the rest of the year or what's left of it around the holidays and work on the new records.

The record is coming along quite nice. We are all excited about the tunes we have and the direction the band is moving in. We are excited about a lot of opportunities that the band has coming up in the next year. A new record, tour, Eurpean tour, festivals, etc.. I get overwhelmed just thinking about it! haha I love it all,

So as the holidays start we hope all of you have a happy & wonderful holiday season.

Sorry!

Before I even get started this morning let me say I'm sorry for not blogging the way I should. I do post daily mini blogs on myspace & twitter but it's not the same thing. It's hard to say much in 140 characters or less. Well myspace does give you 160 but that's not saying a lot more either. I do spend a lot of time everyday answering all of the messages, emails and comments we get. I think it's more important that we talk to our fans in a direct way if we can. Blogs seem so open ended sometimes. Maybe that's just because I ramble.

As for the records things are going really good. I think the spring deadline is right on track. It has been so much fun so far putting this one together. We have learned a lot about what we like & don't like and had fun in the process. I think we have learned some good life lessons as well.

On a side note, our song 'Be Mine' is now on 200+ radio stations across France! We are very excited. Thanks to Sophie and all of our French fans for making this happen!

I know I Know I'm Behind Again!

Even with my best intentions at heart I am so behind on updating blogs that I thought I would never get to it! haha Wow recording records is a fun business but it takes up a lot of time. Massive amounts to be honest. I am now dreaming about pro tools work screens and having night terrors that I forgot the settings for that 'just right' bass sound I just loved three songs ago. Oh well to make music one must become a part of it or so I have been told. I don't quite feel like a treble clef just yet but looking at leadsheets does make the eyes cross after awhile.

We are making good progress on everything. The songs are really coming together just as we had hoped they would. So good in fact we have more songs in final stages then we had originally planned to even record.

I know all of you are excited to hear what we have been up to. We do want to post some demos and some videos of the new tunes in the not so distant future. Amazing how far behind we got with my two week absence for the flu and Jimi taking a weeks leave himself with a kidney stone but all is back on track now. Now if I would just blog more often....

Back to work!

After my unwanted two week vacation for the flu it was back to work this week. I was ready too! It was tough to stop working on the new record right in the middle of everything but there was nothing any of us could do. It's been a really great week so far. We have had some really great creative moments that we were all excited about. It felt good to be making music again for sure. I think we all shared that feeling. Maybe the time off was good for all of us. A chance to recharge our music making batteries.

I better get back to work just wanted to let everyone know we were back to making music. Hopefully we will have something for you to hear very soon!

Broke or not ready to commit just yet?

Starting here in October you or someone you know can get a physical copy of our debut record 'Pompous & Proud' on www.amazon.com for $4.99!

We can also understand that some of you aren't sure you like us that much yet, which is cool because relationships take time. So, this $5 album deal could be the cheap date you need with the Third Grade Haters to take it to the next level.

PLEASE TELL YOUR FRIENDS, YOUR LOVER, YOUR MOTHER AND
YOURSELF TO GO GET A COPY OF OUR RECORD PLEASE. THE RECORD IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON iTUNES (HINT HINT!) SO IF YOU CAN GET TO iTUNES YOU CAN A GET A COPY OF THE RECORD THERE TOO!

Blame it on the Flu!

My new catch phrase for the past two weeks now has been blame it on the flu. For those who don't know I have had the dreaded N1H1 swine flu. Let's just say it's not a lot of fun folks. Worse then that all work on the new record came to a halt. I think that made me feel about as bad as the flu did. Just when you think you can really feel the momentum of everything coming together it just stopped. Oh well it's not like I tried to get to the flu or anything, but still I feel bad about it.

The past month has been a long and hectic one, and unfortunately I was a little too distracted to write on this thing as promised. For all the things I wanna do I seem to want to do music more then anything else. Write it, recorded it, play it, etc.. now if I could just update it like I should I would be on top of everything.

On a side we do have some press coming out the next bit.

Hope all is well with everyone. I'll try not to disappear again!

Woo Hoo

It has been a super fast, busy, productive, exciting and crazy week so far and the weekend is just getting started. No telling what kind of trouble we can get into the next two days. I had some trouble planned for tonight but it got cancelled out. Oh well that left me time to catch up on things have not gotten done this week.

Lots of progress is being made with the new record. Yesterday one of the best days yet if not the best. While working on a couple of tunes the heavens opened up and we were struck with the ideas for two totally new tunes. Both of which are quite good I might add. I was quite exicted about both.

I really like taking our time on this record it allows for amazing things like that to happen. As much as do outside of the studio on our own its great when it really comes to together with all of us there.

I am kinda in a who knows what will happen next mode so lets don't do anything to jinx it! I love change & I love how all of the creative juices are really flowing right now.

Sorry for the lack of posts. I am going to make it top priority to update & blog everyday next week! I'll try to keep my fingers crossed! haha

Fallin Behind

It seems one of us in the band, namely myself, has fallen behind in the update department. Sorry about thatand I promise better in the future.

To say I have been focused on the new record would be an understatement for sure. I think I have put my entire life on hold for this record. It is a freshing feeling though to know that what we are doing we believe this much in. Too many times in the past things have felt like business as usual but not this time.

As for how things are coming along we have 8-9 songs ready to go. They are all in demo form right now so we can listen to them and make changes. We should start to puthings down for good in the next week or so hopefully. Up til now we have been working hard but taking our time too. It's time that we start to speed things up and start seeing the end date in the not so distant future.

Amazing how this record is sounding when played together. We wanted to make a record that really worked well when played together and I think we have gotten that. The songs all work really good on their own as well. The amount of outside influnence can really be heard on these songs too. With our first record it was hard to tell what we had been listening to or who even inspired us not so with this one. I will chalk it up to maturity and experience but who knows really. All I know is that we can't wait for everyone to hear it!

The week in Review

So we survived the first week in the studio which was only three days but it was awesome! We took all of the ideas of the past and threw them out the door. I wanted to actually throw something out the door to symbolise the moment so I did. It felt very freeing. I think if there is a word of the week, sometimes we have a word of the week or saying of the week contest, the word was experimenting. Yeah it was amazing some of the crazy things we thought and tried. All these new sounds and directions led us to do some cool things. One idea was to start playing my beloved by me Rickenbacker bass through a guitar amp. I must say I loved it and may start just playing it that way all the time. We retubed jimi's amp to with some different tubes to help change the sound and wow was it cool. Best sounding amp I've heard in a long time. Jimi could not get enough of it. So much so he played it so loud all day I had to wear earplugs! haha We thought it best to take a couple of days and rest our creative brains and let the subconscious mind workout the details of what we have done so far.

Ok that's all for now but we will be headed back in to work some more over the week. Wish us luck!

And Their Off!!

As of today we are moving into the studio to start work on what is yet our unnamed second record! It's always fun moving into a studio. It's like a new home you just purchased. Even if you have lived in this studio before it still has this whole new appeal to you again. There is just something about it that's hard to explain unless you have lived through it before.

I'm not sure who is the most excited right now of us three. I think it's really all three of us at the same time if that is possible. All for the same and different reasons. I think that excitement is going to carry on throughout the whole process. I believe it will translate into the recordings as well. I think some of the record wil lbe recorded live which should add another whole dimension to its sound.

Since we are recording the record in parts it will be interesting to see how fast we work and how quick the songs come together. We are starting off with five songs. Then we take a short break and return to record some more. No rush no hurry this time at all. Just great music.

Ok so its time to get back to work. Don't worry I am going to update as often as I can about what all we are doing and what we have gotten finished. So stay tuned!

49 Shows and Counting

By the end of August we will have played 49 shows this year so far. Not bad not bad at all. That's a little behind last year's number at this point. All things being equal I think the shows have been a lot better this year and have been at some really great venues. Not to take anything away from those of the past, and some of them will live forever in our hearts, but it's natural I think that what you are doing in the present is more important. If it is or not can be debated endlessly so I will leave that for another day. It's not like the years over either, we still have plenty of dates to play before the year is out.

Starting this week we hit the studio to get to work on the record. We are taking with us five songs to get things started. I don't think any of us have ever been this excited about anything we have ever done before. It feels like there is a rebirth going on inside of us three that we want to share with everyone. I want to try and post pics and daily updates if I can of whats going on and what we are working on. Unless you have been to one of our recent shows you haven't heard any of the new tunes I'm talking about. So it may seem a little odd since you haven't experienced them yet, but you soon will.

On a side note Chris has started to receive treatment for the brain parasites he contracted from the mouth tobacco he uses. We are all wishing him a fast and speedy recovery. We love you bro!

Hope all is well in your worlds too. Drop us a line and tell us what you are doing!

My name is Andy Jones.
My Mother said with a name like that why be called anything else.
I am an only child.
I am quite thin.
I have never met a stranger.
I am a man of many words.
My hair is naturally blonde
I have Green eyes.
I don't drink or smoke.
I am not fond of boredom.
I am very fond of adventure.
Fox Mulder is my hero.
I eat cereal every morning.
Ketchup is my new source of antioxidants.
I love history.
I could watch TV all day.
I would find it difficult to live without my computer.
I can’t live without my iPhone.
My favorite color is currently blue.
My car is white.
I probably drive too slow.
I wish I lived in THE FUTURE.
I wish I could have seen the Beatles play live.
Air Jordans = The Best.
House Parties are ace.
I am rarely unhappy.
Night time is the right time.
I live in a small town.
I love the USA Network.
I am most at peace while at the ocean.
I smile all the time.
I like making people happy.
Marilyn Monroe is my dream girl.
"Don’t Look Back in Anger" by Oasis is my favorite song.
Shawshank Redemption is my favorite movie.
I want to fall in love with a stranger I meet anywhere else but at a show.
Rock Love Peace Yes
77’

New Record Update

I know I know.. it's been awhile since I last talked about the new record and how it is coming along. The news is... wait for it... wait for it.. we will be recording the first five songs this month! We are all excited about getting back in the studio and get these songs down. We hope to have them ready to debut sometime in September. We are going to be launching a promtions campaign at the same time with lots of contests and free stuff.

We had originally talked about recording the whole record at once but have decided that we will record it four to five songs at a time until its finished. Main reason being it will be a lot less stressful that way. The thought of doing 12 or songs at one time can be a daunting task. Plus in doing just a handful at a time will allow us to have the room to really make sure we get everything right. No need to rush.

Of course we will be playing just as many live shows as always. We are planning some bigs shows between now and the end of the year. We are still putting together a spring and summer tour for 2010. We all are very excited about that.

Once we hit the studio I will try to update daily or as often as I can what all we are doing. I think we all feel like seasoned pros after our first record but I know we still ahve so much to learn.

Summers Almost Gone

Summers almost gone. Its been a great summer too. We have played so many shows, meet so many new fans, made lots of new friends, and had so many new doors open up for us. We have started work on what will be our second record as well. As we head towards the fall there is a fresh excitement in the air. We can all feel it. It's hard to hide it. As the song goes, 'the futures so bright you gotta wear shades'. I like to take mine off sometimes just so I can see what we have done & accomplished this summer. I don't believe any of us thought we could do this much in three months. Truth is we couldn't have done any of this without help from all of you. Our fans, friends, interns, family and so many more. The years not over yet. There's still a lot of work to do.

Hope everyone has had a great summer. Thought I would post the words that one of my heroes once wrote. Enjoy


Summer's almost gone
Summer's almost gone Almost gone Yeah, it's almost gone
Where will we be When the summer's gone?
Morning found us calmly unaware Noon burn gold into our hair At night, we swim the lapis sea When summer's gone Where will we be
Where will we be Where will we be
Morning found us calmly unaware Noon burn gold into our hair At night, we swim the lapis sea When summer's gone Where will we be
Summer's almost gone Summer's almost gone
We had some good times But they're gone
The winter's comin' on Summer's almost gone

Ready...set...levitate!

Midair is the lofty realm of the Third Grade Haters Andy Jones, and his high flying acts of stratospheric jumps.

Why do we love Andy Jones? For the same reasons we love Peter Pan. Because he can fly, because he is a kid and always will be. "I'm never going to grow up/Never going to grow up/Not me!"

Breathes there a human anywhere who can float longer than the 25-year-old, 5'10", 160-pound Jones? Someday an updraft will catch him in midglide, or Tinker Bell herself will sprinkle him with fairy dust, and he will waft on over the stage and up into the wires and lights of a venue arena like a raptor soaring into the clouds. And no one will be surprised.

"I've never had my vertical leap measured," says the child-pilot himself, "but sometimes I think about how high I get up." He, too, marvels at his gravity-defying feats, searching for an explanation. "I always spread my legs when I jump high, like on my Rock-a-baby, and it seems like I've opened a parachute, like, that slowly brings me back to the floor. “I was really up there in our last show. On my last jump I think I was close to eye level with the ceiling. Sometimes you just hit your head on the ceiling, but this time it was my elbows and everything. I almost over jumped the entire stage." "I always play on the crowd."

What about that tongue hanging out, that pink badge of foolhardiness glistening against his skin? Is there any adult anywhere who does that when he plays? "My father used to have his tongue out when he'd be working, doing mechanical stuff," says Jones, "and I just picked it up from him. It's not a conscious thing. I can't play with it in." He sighs and shakes his head, for he knows that playground kids—who imitate his every nuance and dress habit, who see in him, if not a person whose skills might be attainable, then at least a big buddy—have started hanging their tongues out on stage. "I'm afraid they'll bite them off," Jones says. He then warns: "For your tongues' sake, kids, don't do it."

For young boys everywhere, we can take a moment to describe Jones current, and less risky, music couture, the air jordans he wears. The new air jordans are laced only to the second eyelet from the top ("I've just always done it that way," Jones says). None of which would mean a blessed thing if Jones weren't the charismatic entertainer he is.
"He's got a lot of Pete Townsend in him, and a lot of Angus Young," says TGH singer/ guitarist Jimi Holiday. "Hendrix had that intensity and carriage. And nobody played the crowd like that."
In fact, these days Jones is in a class of one. With older bands now fading, hobbling and rooted to the earth, Jones has the realm of midair largely to himself.

With no real offers of serious competition to his air supremacy Jones is making the most of his new found heights. “It’s amazing how high I get up sometimes without even knowing it.” “The intensity that we play drives all three of us to do things we never thought possible.” What the three members of TGH call shows some are now calling the most electric thing to hit the stage in years. With an inside tip of the recent round of air jordans that were recently purchased, I don’t look for things to come down to ground level anytime soon.

ahh yes...it's Monday again already

As one of our songs says 'there's nothing like a Monday morning to make you stop and think'. It has for sure been one of those Mondays. Thinking has been the word of the day. More specifically what is the next move we make. Where do we go from here. With the world in constant chnage around us how do we adapted and continue to move forward in the direction we want to go. Is the music industry as broke as we all talk like it is. More questions then answers today. Nothing wrong with that I don't suppose. Questions usually lead to answers. Hopefully the right answers in our case. Then again, what is the right answer. I have no idea at this point. Maybe we should just ride lucks tailcoats awhile and see what happens. I'm sure something good or at least exciting will come up. It gets hard to think months in advance. It's even harder to plan and plot the nxt move when you don't know for sure what you think is going to happen will even happen. Being in a band is a long ways from a 9-5 job that has history and instuctions to follow. Then again maybe not. Bands have been around a long time too. Maybe everyone sits back and has days where they just think about what's next before they really need to. I think that's enough thinking for me for one day too. I'll leave it to you to think some now.

The Frog

Deliver me from the darkness in which I dwell. Holy sky, Satanic earth as demons make my brain swell. How many times have I seen her by the morbid lake holding her thoughts and fears as the seaboils and the mountains brake. Stop now and listen to this. I have dreamed myself across this vast land in cool nights of wandering. Hopeless, thoughtless, desperate, thirsting for energy. Wanting water poured across the gentle frog. Please hold my frog for me. He wants to be held. He wants to be delivered from the land from which he dwelled. Help him.

Divorced or Obsessed

I think we need to find some obsessed fans. It seems to be working for other bands so I think it would work for us too. Maybe I should announce that my parents are divorcing. That seems to be working for bands to. The common theme from band blogs these days seem to be targeted towards getting an emotion out of you that you can either identify with or have lived through. I normally blog about the band itself or what we have been up to. I don't know if I like this new trend or not. I mean, if you are going through something and want to share it, go ahead. To share it to get fans attention or to get them to buy your records is another thing. Maybe the current economic climate is forcing bands to do things they would have never done before. I mean, how many bands really open up and talk about their feelings and the problems they are going through personally? Something tells me John Lennon would not approve. I want to make John proud!

On a side note, I have had the biggest phobia that Chris could have a brain parasite. I got to thinking about how he uses mouth tobacco and got to thinking that there has to be parasites in that. How could there not be.

I hope this blog has inspired some kind of emotion in you once you read it. If it makes you want to be an obsessed fan or buy our record, then good. If not, at least I made John proud of me tonight.

Rock..Love..Peace..Yes!

Milestones, Tours & Solutions

Thank you to all of our many fans for your help & support. We reached the milestone of 80K friends on myspace today! No matter what anyone else thinks we are excited about it. Hopefully there are many more milestones ahead for us in the coming days.

We spent a good part of Thursday mapping out a spring & summer 2010 tour. It will mainly be in the southeast, but we hope to cover a good part of the south this time around. There are cities we have visited before and plenty of cities we have never played on the list. Hopefully some festivals this time too.

As for touring, we have also worked up a new solution to what we see as a negative when it comes to touring. With the music industry in constant change and the current economic problems we thought we better take a look at how we have toured in the past and make some changes. We all three think the ideas we have come up with will help us escape the pitfalls and mistakes we have made in the past. Just liek swinging over a pit on vine trying to escape snakes, we can't afford to make the same turing mistakes anymore. They are too costly!

Quick update to on the new record. Still working on all of the songs and putting demos together. I think we are as excited as we have ever been about getting this album right and letting you hear it. I think you are going to really like it!!!

Progress Report

The demos are going good. We've been trying out new song structures and adding different elements to the songs. seeing what works and what doesn't. Jimi is a machine! It still blows my mind to watch him play each instrument and lay down the tracks without playing to anything. Monday was the first day of demos. We have so many more songs to do.

The weekend has been rad. Several friends, Kenny & Anthony, came out to see what was going on. I was so exhausted from working I kept passing out early in the night. Not much fun. Sorry dudes. Last night was a good one though. Been listening to some old country records I found at the house.

It's not even midnight and I feel like i'm about to pass out. Too many early mornings and late nights working. There's not enough coffee in the world to keep me energized all day. Considering I don't drink coffee. My brain isn't functioning anymore, because i spend everyday talking and thinking about the record. I just want to start recording for real.

Don' worry it want be long til you hear the fruits of labor. The new tunes are coming soon!

Oh Yeah!

Shows, Tours & Headaches

Busy today booking more shows for the band. If you follow the band at all you know this is a sore but reward spot with me. I spend more time fussing about shows and booking them then we do playing them. Maybe one day I will just give up and then all of the shows we want will magically fall right into our laps! Nothing wrong with wishful thinking now is there?

Trying to map out a tour for spring 2010 as well. All of this adds up to a headache really. Working with venues, venues working with us. Finding and getting the best dates possible. Which citied to visit, which cities to not visit. All the while keeping in mind our fans and where they would like to see us play. Not that there's anything wrong with any city or venue, it's just trying to find the best fit for us at this time and place we are at. I guess that's another topic all together. One I don't care to elaborate on right now.

I think we are going to finish the year off quite strong with a good number of shows at some really great venues. Looking ahead to 2010, I am really excited to see what is shaping up.

That's enough for now. I need to send about a dozen or so emails and make a few more calls before things get too busy tonight!

Someday...

Someday
We will be famous.We & all our friends will have our own TV show.
We'll be so famous that we can have you write our theme song and be in our TV show. It’ll be on Disney channel because were cool like that.
You can play yourself and be the awesome singer that all the girls love and we'll out show Hannah Montana.
Then my friends and I will be so famous we'll have our own fashion line.
We'll have you on our show so you'll be even more rich and famous.
Oh yes. You can be in it too.
but you have to come to Wisconsin first.
Never mind the past that’s all behind now. It’s clear seas ahead for the rest of the journey.
I have learned a lot in the past days, now it’s time to put it all to work.
For you
For the TV show
For the fashion line
For everyone
It’s time!

Knoxville News Sentinel Article on TGH

Hey All

I wanted to post the piece from today's Knoxville News Sentinel about the band. Thanks to Jer Cole for writing the article.

Third Grade Haters prove the road is overrated
By Jer Cole Thursday, July 9, 2009

In a relatively short time, local rock trio Third Grade Haters have caught fire in Knoxville. Together just under two years, the band has been featured on NBC, The CW, TBS, Planet Green and MTV, and is preparing to record its second album. Though The Haters' annual gig count numbers around 100, the group has seldom made it out of state, disproving the frequent claim that no band gets noticed without leaving Knoxville.

With each member emerging out of now-defunct acts, Third Grade Haters began with a well-defined concept for its musical direction. Looking to decades worth of British rock for influence, the trio plays raw, unembellished rock with all the intensity three dudes can muster.

"TGH plays British rock and roll, Southern style," describes guitarist/vocalist Jimi Holiday. "I like to think of our music as one part Jet plus one part Arctic Monkeys plus two parts Kings of Leon with a dash of The Beatles thrown in for late '60's flavor."

"I would compare our music to that made in the late '60s and early '70s with a touch of dance rock added in," elaborates bassist Andy Jones. "I think we are certainly influenced by bands from that era but also by many current bands as well. We play music free of the ideas that have been placed on it over the years. Rock 'n' roll once knew no boundaries; it was whatever it was. Perhaps our music is an experience, a moment, a projection of all of the things in the world all at one time. A journey of a lifetime confined in a single moment."

The biggest obstacle faced by most trios is in reproducing a full, encompassing sound outside of a studio. With no intention of expanding its scant lineup, the Third Grade Haters assert that live shows are anything but problematic. In fact, TGH has built its reputation on the energy of its frequent live performances.

"Our live show is packed with the kind of raw energy and brash attitude that comes with youth and hits you like an express train," Jones continues. "Live, we will blow your brains clear through the back of your skull and leave your body flopping around like a helpless rag doll being shaken by a petulant child who's forgotten to take their Ritalin. In a word, it is an experience."

While many local bands devote summers to national touring, TGH has taken advantage, filling the void of local performances as it tries new material out on its area fan base. In pre-production for a sophomore release due out by the end of 2009, the group is narrowing down the potential track list from a pool of more than 100 that have been written since the release of its debut, "Pompous and Proud," this past November.

"Right now we're in the early stages of putting a new record together," says Holiday. "No decisions on a title as of yet, but as far as content goes, watch out! We're getting ready to let loose with a barn-burning, hide-your-children, there's-a-big-scary-rock-and-roll-tornado-at-your-door kind of record."

"I think the songs will for sure show growth in our songwriting and in musicianship," adds Jones. "A lot more time and thought has gone into the new record. Not to say we didn't think about the first record a lot, but I think we know more about what we want to do this time and have a better idea how to get the results we want. We had written over 100 songs since our first release to pick the best songs from. So we felt confident that we had enough material to make a second record."
To road-test material prior to their upcoming recording sessions, Third Grade Haters have jam-packed the month of July with local outings

It's July!

Summer is finally here or so it feels like now that we are past the 4th of July. The holiday has always been like a launch for Summer for me.

Everyone keeps asking what our big plans for the Summer are and we keep telling them to play more shows. haha I thought we really tried to book shows in advance this year, but I don't think we did. Maybe we should trying booking an entire year out. Not sure venues do that anymore, but I guess it's worth a try.

We are still in pre-production of our new record. Things are coming right along. There should be some solid demos of the songs very soon. We will have to get thos out for you to hear.

All in all I think it's going to be a great Summer. We have some really great shows to play over the next couple of months. Tie that together with a new record and I think it's going to be quite fun.

Hope everyone out there has a great Summer too!

Waiting Game

Hello All

It's yet another beautiful Tuesday Summer day. I have spent all morning waiting on a handful of callbacks from local venues about show dates. Those famous words 'I'll get right back with you' are becoming the stinging in my ears that just makes me want to scream.

I know times are tough for lots of venues across the USA. I understand that I really do. What I don't understand is not letting local acts at least play at your venue.

The calander at most local venues here are full of bands from everywhere else but here. Bands that I have never heard of either. I don't know if venues think the local scene is so bad it's better to bring in unheaqrd of out of town bands then let anyone from here play. I'm just not at this point.

Going to be contacting some locals we know and see what they think is up. Not sure that they know either. Not sure if anyone in this town knows really.

Oh well, so goes another day in the music business. Playing the waiting game.

Attack Attack Attack!

Attack Attack Attack! That has become our new motto over the past week. The time has come for us to get aggressive and go get the things we want. It's not like we have been sitting around or anything, but the days and weeks of planning for this are finally here, and it's time to put it all into motion.

It's not like we don't work hard or anything. There is always new and good news surrounding the band. Let's just say things haven't been moving as fast as we would like. So we decided to do something about it.

All three of us have taken on different jobs in different areas. It's cool to hear everyone talk about what they have been working on. The ideas that are flowing from that are just crazy.

We are going to need your help! So stay tuned the call will be going out for you to join in the revolution too.

As I have branded us we are the Evolution of Revolution! So get ready World, here we come!

Haircuts & Competition

Hey all sorry it's been a few days since we last blogged. It's been busy here as usually. Working our rearends of on the new reocord. Plus, this may come as surprise, but we are trying to book more shows. I think I need a blog dedicated to the endless pursuit to book shows for the band. More on that another day.

Just got back from getting my haircut. This is something I do twice a year it seems anymore. Partly because I like it long, partly because we are so busy, and partly because I'm too lazy to go do it more often. No matter though, I don't think anyone is keeping up with how long my hair is or isn't, so I will get a haircut when I can. I want to add though, the woman who cuts my hair, Renee, does an amazing job!

On to the subject of competition. Not sure what it is or if it's a local thing only around here, but I get the sense that bands are trying to compete with each other. The idea that music fans can like & listen to mutiple artists seem to escape them. They are all trying to be the best. Forget playing with other bands that might be or simple are better then your own band, is a crazy revolutionary idea that can only end in doom.

The idea of playing with bigger and better bands excites us. We have been trying of late to get those said bands to come play shows with us. Most of them have said yes to our requests which is really cool. Our request to most bands to come out and play shows together go completely unnoticed or at least unanswered. They could at least send us a short answer telling us that they are trying to be the best band in the world and by playing shows with other bands that that fact will be lost on all in attendence and will hurt their prospects of achieveing that goal. Either way a reply would be nice.

Ok enough with that. It's time to get on the phone and start calling venues about shows...again.

Booking Shows

Happy Monday!

As always on Monday's its up early and back to work. The one thing we always try to do on Monday's is book shows. I have no idea why we try to book shows on Monday's other then we need to book them and it seemed like a good idea when we first started.

I don't know what it is with venues but it takes forever to get them to respond to your requests. You give them all of the info you think they need like dates you want to play, contact info, etc, but still it takes week to hear back from them. Even venues you have played so many times you can't remember how many times you have played there, it still take weeks to get back to you.

I think the answer lies in needing a booking agent to do the job for us. I'm sure they have way more contacts with way more venues then we do.

Looks like we will play 60-70 shows this year. That's down from last year but I'm not complaining. We love being out there with the fans and other bands doing what we love!

Party Time

It's another one of those crazy TGH things we like to do from time to time. Throw a big house party!

Looks like with the hot temps here (it's currently 98!) lots of people are in the mood for music and a cookout. These things have been known to get quite out of control and I expect nothing less tongiht.

We are going to try out some of our new tunes tonight on everyone and see what they think. I'm sure we will work in a few of the old favs but mainly this is about the new stuff. It's good to start getting reactions now before we move ahead much more.

I'll try and post some pics from tonight if I can figureout how. Still working on that one!

Have a great Saturday!

We Won!!

Thanks to everyone who voted for us as rockitoutblog.org band of the week on youtube.

We won!!

Big thanks to Sascha for nominating us for the band of the week contest. It's fans like you that help make our dreams come true!

You can checkout the video on YouTube here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOy9QGgrk6M

It's always great when a good week ends on a high note.

Incase you haven't heard we are playing a house party tomorrow night. They are always wild & fun!

Have a great weekend

Welcome Aboard!

Hello and welcome aboard our new blog!

We thought it was time to get ourselves a blog and start posting all of the crazy things we do, try, want to do, meet (yeah we do meet people who are crazier then ourselves), basically whatever we feel like.

We are going to be blogging about making our new record too. We thought it would be cool to talk about all that happens while we put it togther. I guess we could already be blogging about that since we have already started the process of making a new record. More on that later.

Many of you know that we are very active here online which seems to be rare for rock n roll bands, maybe bands in genereal, I don't know. Maybe I just talk a lot!

So stay tuned there's no telling what is going to get written here. I make no promises about the validity of anything posted here. In other words, welocme to our World!